Meet Senior Tech Editor Troy Templin

We welcome Troy Templin to our Road/Gravel group today as our new Senior Tech Editor. He has spent the last seven years as a journalist, photographer and product reviewer. We asked him a few questions about his life in cycling. 

What bike made you fall in love with cycling?

As a kid, I did a lot of BMX riding. Everything from dirt jumps to racing. I was never great, but as a kid, it was a lot of fun, and the independence the bike offered was what kept me pedaling. As I got a bit older, my dad invited me on mountain bike rides, and I instantly fell in love. I remember when I got my first carbon fiber bike, a Trek Y22. This definitely wasn’t my first bike, but it was the first one that really felt special. I held onto that bike for a very long time and wish I wouldn’t have sold it 10 years ago! 

Growing up, your family vacations centered around cycling. Where did those take you?

My family always did family vacations by car. We would drive everywhere, and it felt like every trip revolved around some riding destination. Sometimes it was a new trail my dad had read about, and other times it was a trip up to Mackinac Island to ride the island and explore with no cars. It didn’t matter where we were going, we always seemed to be packing a helmet.

Your other passion is cars?

I have a love-hate relationship with vehicles. I love unique cars and just about anything that is old. The challenge of keeping an older car roadworthy is fun. It is the hunt that I love the most. Whether it is parts or the vehicles themselves, hunting for parts that are no longer made is so rewarding when you finally find what you need. I have a few projects, but the one that gets the most attention is my 1989 VW TriStar Syncro Doppelkabine (Doka, as most know them). It is a pretty rare truck, with only 500 ever made. They were never sold in North America, so finding parts is a hell of a hunt and a lot of Google Translate. Luckily the VW community is awesome, and it does share a few parts with the Vanagon.

How has cycling shaped your life?

Cycling has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. My entire family rides, and my younger brother also works in the cycling industry. We were mostly mountain bike focused when I was growing up, but road and now gravel have been a great way to build fitness and structure. I love the tech side of cycling the most and look at things from a different view than the normal road racer. Cycling is always evolving, and I really like the balance of tradition with modern data acquisition. It is an awesome time for cyclists of all levels and abilities. 

The perfect day of cycling?

That is tough for me because I love all disciplines of cycling. One day it might be a long road ride in the Angeles National forest above my house in Southern California, and the next, an MTB or gravel ride in the same mountains. My next priority is a ride on my e-bike to scout trails and roads for my next adventure. By far, my favorite day on a bike is with my kids. Watching them explore their abilities is something that I would give up any other ride for.